Marseille-based Provence Technologies, an independent company offering R&D services to the pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical, announced the launch of Screening 1000, a new US$ 1.7 million research programme with the goal of discovering a new ultra-pure molecule for the healthcare market. The project is being launched by the R&D department of Provence Technologies and is being co-financed equally by Oseo, the French innovation promotion agency and Provence Technologies. The programme is planned to run for two years and aims to develop a new range of products. The project is set up to find and market a new ultra-pure molecule.
 
The Screening 1000 will firstly analyse 1000 chemical compounds already on the market and detect those that show anomalies in purity. The use of already known compounds allows an existing range to be optimised, thereby reducing development costs.
 
Provence Technologies will then focus on new compounds with the most promising market potential. To help achieve this, the company will develop new approaches to purification and synthesis, making it possible to meet the purity levels required by health regulations.
 
“We hope this research project will create as much success as Provence Technologies enjoyed with our efforts around methylene blue. The really innovative part of this program is implementing new solutions in the fields of purification of active principles or alternative synthesis pathways,” said Claude Monteils, internal R&D project coordinator, Provence Technologies. “We are delighted that the French innovation promotion agency Oseo, which is a traditional partner of Provence Technologies, is joining us in this highly promising project and again supporting us in our strategy of innovation.”

“As well as providing R&D services in the field of fine chemistry, Provence Technologies will continue to develop its own internal research projects and proprietary research efforts,” said Dr Babak Sayah, chief operating officer, Provence Technologies. “This new programme demonstrates the high added value of our own technologies in finding new uses for molecules, both old and new, in response to increasingly high stakes in public health.”